


Section Hike

by lalalena



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cute, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:53:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27229165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lalalena/pseuds/lalalena
Summary: Felicity Smoak likes to section hike the Pacific Crest Trail on weekends to help clear her mind. She usually goes at it alone, but on one of her hikes she runs into two men and a boy and they hike together but she cant help but admire one of them men, Oliver.
Relationships: Oliver Queen & Felicity Smoak, Oliver Queen/Felicity Smoak
Comments: 11
Kudos: 150





	Section Hike

**Author's Note:**

> I don't really know what this it. I was just bored and wanted to write something. I also have a fascination with hiking and even seen pictures of EmBett on hikes so I thought why not?
> 
> This doesn't really have any plot though. 
> 
> I didn't check this for any grammatical errors! :)
> 
> But enjoy anyway!
> 
> (Slight mention of death)

Felicity Smoak heaved her large backpack off her shoulders and heard it fall to the ground with a thump. She loved her new Osprey magenta colored backpack with all the pockets she could possibly need but right now she was not happy with it and she wanted to kick it into the nearby river with her hiking shoes.

It wasn’t the backpack’s fault that she was having a bad day, more like bad year but she still wanted to take it out on something and right now her backpack was the closest thing to her and it had been bothering her today. She had taken her long sleeve button up of around noon when it started to get warm, leaving her in her tank top and shorts and the shoulder pads on her backpack had been rubbing her shoulders all day causing a very irritating red mark and sunburn from the bright sun. Then at lunch time, half of her cooked noodles had fallen on the ground and last night she found she forgot to put new batteries in her headlamp.

She was having a frustrating day after she was trying to get away from her frustrating work and home life.

She threw her head back and let out a groan and mover her shoulders around, testing them out; they were sore but nothing she hadn’t experienced before.

In fact, she had probably experienced everything that backcountry campers would experience. This wasn’t her first time out in the woods; she had been out here many times on this same trail of the Pacific Crest Trail that was closest to Starling City to where she could get a ride out. By now she knew this trail like the back of her hand; she knew where each rock laid and where she could easily access water and the best place to set up her tent for the night.

So now she stopped for the night at one of her normal camping spots. It was close to the trail, near the river and a small lake and the ground was flat and perfect for her tent. It was a bit early to be done for the day after only ten miles of walking but she needed a break after not sleeping well in the tent last night and the annoying day she was having today.

Deciding to put the tent up first, she took a deep breath trying to do an off version of meditation while her hands did the work of setting up her shelter for the night. After that, she walked to the river and refilled her water and took a long pull of the cool liquid. Back at her little camp site, she started up her mini propane stove and boiled some water.

When her instant cheesy potatoes were almost ready, she heard a voice approaching.

She sighed. The sun would be setting soon and where she was, was prime restate to set up camp and as much as she wanted to be alone in the woods, she wouldn’t be able to stop these people from staying here for the night.

She didn’t look up as the people – she could hear multiple footfalls now – came into her sight, instead she turned off her stove and ripped up some jerky to throw in the potatoes.

“Hello.” A deep voice said.

Felicity looked up and her eyes widened considerably at the approaching men.

Only a few times had she been out hiking, had she been with other people. Most of her friends didn’t like to be out in the woods with no indoor plumbing or showers and she liked the solitude this hobby of hers gave her, so she was out here by herself a majority of the time. And as a solo female hiker, she always erred on the side of caution when running into others on the trial, especially men, she had heard too many horror stories of females on trails so she liked to keep a knife around her neck at all times if there was ever any creepy people she came across.

These men, while they didn’t look creepy – in fact she thought they were very attractive – were large, very large. The dark skinned man, the one who said hello, arms were twice the size of her head. The other man, light but tan skin and blond hair was smaller than the other but still very large and muscular, he had a necklace on and at the end she say an arrow head resting on his chest. They both wore t-shirts that showed their muscular arms and chests and shorts. They both walked with a way about them that Felicity couldn’t quiet put her finger on but they had to be military. Felicity looked behind the smaller of the two men and saw and even smaller man, a boy probably about ten years old who looked so much like blond hair it was no mistake they were father and son.

“Hi.” Felicity responded warily wondering if she should grab the knife that rested on her breasts.

The two men and boy stopped in the small clearing making sure to keep their distance, Felicity blew out a breath. The boy threw off his small backpack while the two men waited.

“I’m Digg, this is Oliver and his son Will.” He took a step closer and reached a hand out, waiting for her to take it if she wished.

She stood up from the ground and dusted herself off and reached for his hand which swallowed hers as they shook. “Felicity.”

“Nice to meet you Felicity. Would you mind if we set up camp here?” Digg asked.

“Not at all.” She said, sitting back down to find her night clothes now that it was getting chilly the later it got.

The two men started to unpack the things they needed, still keeping their distance from Felicity.

“Will.” Oliver called to the boy who seemed to be studying a bug in his hand. “Why don’t you set up the tent while I make dinner?”

“Ok!” Will lightly put the bug back on the tree and opened his bag and started to set up the tent.

Soon two more tents were up near Felicity’s and their dinner was warm in their stomachs and their bottles filled with fresh water. She couldn’t help but continue to look over at them and notice how well they all worked together and how the boy didn’t seem bored out here like she might have thought.

The sun was starting to set and Felicity was in her warm sleeping clothes. She was blowing up her sleep pad when the boy brought out a drone from his father’s bag.

“Dad, it’s not working.” The boy called to his father who was walking back to camp.

“Does it have battery?” Oliver asked.

“Yeah, the battery pack was plugged into it. It’s turning on but won’t fly or wont connect to the controller or something.”

“Here, let me look at it.” Oliver took the drone and turned it over in his hands. He looked at it for a few minutes but couldn’t figure it out. “Sorry kid, I don’t know what’s wrong with it.” He handed it back to Will.

The boy turned to Digg. “John can you look at it?”

Digg lay on the ground, using his pack as a recliner and his hands behind his head. “I know nothing about that technology.”

The boy’s lip jutted out in disappointment.

“I can, uh, I can look at it.” Felicity said from near her tent, she looked at Oliver quickly. “If that’s ok of course.”

Oliver looked at her, he had a hard face, an intimidating but an attractive one. She wondered if he was in the military like she originally guessed and if he was what had he seen? He nodded at William who brought it over to her.

She took the drone from him. “There was a problem with these when they came out. The controller didn’t connect to the drone and sometimes when people would be flying them, it would just stop working and they would just fall out of the sky. People were not happy about it, I mean I get it. You spent so much money on these and suddenly it doesn’t work, that’s some bull-“ She caught herself and looked at the boy who smiled at her.

“That’s ok. My dad says bullshit all the time.” He smiled.

“William!” Oliver called over.

“Sorry dad!” He looked to her. “Sorry.”

Felicity smiled. “That’s ok.” She took a tent stake and somehow used it to unscrew the drone where wires could be seen and while she worked on the drone, the boy came to stand behind her and watch what she was doing. He quietly asked her a few questions about why she moved that thing there and she would answer him easily.

“There.” She said, handing it back to him. “It should work now.”

“Thank you!” William said while turning it on. “How did you know how to fix it?”

“Oh well, computer and anything techy is kinda my thing, it’s what I do for a job.”

Will’s eyes widened. “Really? That’s so cool! I love computers. I’m trying to get my dad to let me go to this computer science camp next year. I really want to go but I have to make sure my room is clean all the time and help around the house. I’ve even learned to mow the lawn. It’s not much fun to do but it gets me closer to the camp. I’ve done some day camp stuff when I was younger but that was easy baby stuff. I want to learn more about computers and stuff even though my friends make fun of me for it. Have you ever been to a camp like that before?”

Felicity smiled at the kid who rambled like she did. “Yes and I did. My friends made fun of me for it too but I learned to ignore them and get better friends. Heck I made met my best friend at Space Camp when I was eleven.”

William’s mouth opened and he slowly sank to the ground, drone forgotten beside him. “You went to Space Camp? But you’re a girl!”

“Girls can go to Space Camp too.” She replied, slightly offended by this kid.

“That’s so cool.” He whispered then turned towards his dad. “Dad! She went to Space Camp!”

“I heard. That’s impressive.” Oliver said standing up and nudging the sleeping Digg with his foot. “Come on Will, it’s time for bed. We are getting up early tomorrow.”

Felicity was woken the next morning by a deep voice claiming it was time to get up and get walking. She rolled over in her small tent and look at the ceiling; it was dewy and when she breathed out she could she her breath. The sun was just letting it’s self be known and she sat up ready for her morning coffee.

She stepped outside her tent, walked a few yards into the trees to do her business and light her stove when she got back to heat up some water.

“Morning.” John said with a large smile.

“Morning.” She said her voice still thick with sleep but she couldn’t help but smile back at the large man.

She went back into her tent and checked her supplies and got dressed before emerging back out to start dismantling her tent. First she poured her instant coffee into the water and stirred.

“Ah, you’re smart. You brought coffee.” John said, squatting over his stove making breakfast while Oliver and Will stumble out of their tents fully dressed.

“It’s not something I am willing to give up even if it is for a few days.” She said, taking a sip of the below par coffee. “Even if it does taste like toilet water.” She added with a face to her brown liquid.

“So you’re a section hiker?” Asked John. “We all are. Wanted to get out of Starling for a bit and see some stars.” He added some information, trying to make her more comfortable.

“Yeah, I just section hike. Don’t think I’m quite ready for a thru hike just yet.” She replied, not adding she was from the same city.

The men eat their breakfast while Felicity took down her tent and ate a granola bar. She was ready before they were and heaved her pack onto her back.

“See you guys out there.” She said with a wave and hit the trail.

After a mile or so on the trail, she let out a long breath. Having company while solo hiking was common but she still preferred to be alone and those men seemed nice but it was good to be by herself again in the cool morning where she could think about everything or nothing. She kept her head on a swivel, keeping an eye out for any bears that might be nearby. While she was terrified of kangaroos, she knew she wouldn’t run into one of those while on the trail but she was near Yosemite National Park where it was required to have a bear canister for food storage and she really didn’t want to run into a bear out here.

At lunch time, she was starting to get hungry so she stopped in some shade and had some almond butter on a tortilla, it wasn’t much but diner would be better. She was starting to think about work and how she could win over a potential client when she heard the three men come up to her again.

Digg showed up first. “Hey! Long time no see.” He said in his cheerful way. Then Oliver and William showed up a few minutes later. They all sat down – after John ask if it was ok again – and had some small talk but then Digg left only wanting to take a short lunch. Felicity wanted a longer lunch, her shoes were worn and older and her feet hurt, so she stayed with Oliver and William while they sat back and listened to Will talk.

Felicity studied both of them but was more intrigued about Oliver. He was very silent and the broody type and had a hard face that didn’t move much unless it was to smile at his son who didn’t seemed fazed by his father’s stony exterior. Her eyes moved down to his chest and she say some tattoos poking beneath his shirt and she suddenly wanted to know what they were. She looked down to his left hand and didn’t see a ring or a tan line on his finger and wanted to know if William’s mom was around. Will talked a lot, enough to rival her but he still had yet to mention his mother.

She looked back to his face and was hit again by how attractive he was and she realized how ok she was for not being alone for once with this man and his son who continued to talk to Felicity like he knew her all his life. Oliver’s eyes moved from his son’s to her and she blushed when she realized she had been caught ogling this man.

“Can I walk with you?” Will asked when they were all done packing up their stuff. “I wanna hear all about Space Camp.”

“Uh.” She looked to Oliver then back to Will. “If it’s ok with your dad.”

“He’s like the Energizer Bunny. He won’t stop.” His lips lightly moved up.

They started walking again, Oliver was a few yards ahead of them, making sure to stay close to his son while William rattled question after question about computers and the different kind of camps she has been to. She answered each of his questions and asked him about his likes of computers too. He smiled and would bounce with joy and talk about what he wanted to do at camp.

The three met a wide river that was moving fast and was high after the latest snow fall up north.

“I don’t think Will will be able to make it across without the river taking him away. I may have to carry him.” Oliver said.

“I don’t want you to carry me.” William said with a pout.

Felicity once again looked at Oliver’s large arms. “While I have no doubt that you could carry him,” She blushed. “I know a better way and it’s only an extra five minute walk but it is off trail." She pointed behind her to the wooded area.

Oliver looked at the river then to William then to Felicity. “Lead the way.”

She took them off trail and they walked for a few minutes alongside the river when a very old looking bridge came into view.

“I advise one person at a time. I’m not sure how old it is and how much weight it can take. Not that I’m saying you are large, I mean you are large but in like a really good way but you are not heavy in an unhealthy way. You look really healthy to me and five, four, three, two one.” She took a deep breath. “I’ll go first shall I? Watch out for the darker wood, I wouldn’t trust them too much, you might fall through.”

She took an easy step onto the bridge above the roaring water and stepped with confidence; she had been over this bridge many times before. When she made it to the other side she looked behind her and watched Will take an uneasy step on the bridge while holding the old splintery railing tight. It took him twice at long to get to Felicity but when he did he jumped for joy and high fived her. Then she watched Oliver go across and couldn’t help but admire his stealthiness. It looks as though he had crossed this bridge as many if not more times than Felicity. He stepped over the rotting parts with light feet and made it to them in no time at all.

“What?” He asked noticing her staring at him.

“What are you, a ninja? That looked like it was the easiest thing for you to do! I’ve been over that thing thousands of times and don’t trust it or myself as much as you do.”

He shrugged. “You’ve been over it thousands of times?” He asked as they made their way back to the trail.

“Oh yeah. I section hike this part all the time, I know it very well.”

“Well I’m glad we are with you then.” He smiled at her.

Felicity, who knew this place so well and where every rock lay, got her foot caught on a root and started to fall face first when Oliver caught her quickly.

“Are you ok?”

“Ye- yeah.” She stuttered.

Her face burned red at his closeness and embarrassment. She only tripped because he smiled at her and it made her forget where they were for a moment as his bright blue eyes stared at her. She coughed once and righted herself up, making sure to straighten her pack before marching on ahead.

It wasn’t long until they met up with Digg at his little camp site and tent already up as he was making his dinner and some of his belonging were spread about on tress, they seemed to be wet as he had them drying in what was left of the sun for the day.

“Hey wayward travelers.” He greeted.

“Did you fall in that river back there?” Oliver asked, unpacking his things.

“Yeah, was almost to the other side when one of those currents got me.” He eyed them. “How are you guys not wet?”

Oliver motioned to Felicity. “Felicity knew another way around.”

John looked impressed as he turned to her. “Really?”

“There’s an old bridge a few minutes down the river.” She said with a shrug of her shoulders and noticed she was setting up her tent closer to theirs today.

Once they all got settled down, William asked, “Do you have a trail name?”

“No, I don’t.” Felicity replied.

Trail names were so common that you could spend days and says with other people and not even know their real names as you only called each other by a nickname. But no, she never gave herself one.

“Do you have a trail name?” She asked him.

“Kinda. People call me Little Arrow or Arrow Junior because my dad’s trail name is the Arrow and John’s is Spartan.”

She nodded her head. “Those are cool names.”

“We should think of one for you!”

“You think of some and let me know.”

“So Felicity,” Oliver started. “What brings you out on the trail?”

“This weekend or in general?” She asked, tucking her knees under her.

Oliver chuckled. “This weekend.”

“Work.” She sighed. “It’s been kicking my butt. I own my own business and I’m trying to win over a potential client but I have a competitor that brings in the big guns to win them over and I think it's cheating. Just because they have more money to spend on them doesn’t necessarily mean they are the one to go with. I’m smart. I know what I’m doing and I need the clients, I don’t even know why Queen Industries is trying so hard against me. Like can’t they just crawl into their corporate hole and let me have one client? But nooo, they always take my clients away from me. Rat bastards.” She breathed.

She didn’t mean to talk that much about work but it had been bothering her for so long now and she didn’t have anyone to complain to so it slipped out now. And it was true, she was trying to win over a client but another business Queen Industries kept swooping in with their money and schmoosing and kept loosing clients and she was tired of it.

The two older men stayed quiet but John’s eyebrows were up as he slowly looked over to Oliver who seemed very interested in the ground.

“Sorry, sometimes I ramble.” She said embarrassed.

“My last name is Queen!” William interjected. “My dad owns Queen Industries. Right dad?”

Felicity’s eyes widened as she looked to Oliver. “What?”

Oliver ran his hands on his shorts. “Uh yeah.” He said very awkwardly.

A red hot blush covered Felicity’s face and she could feel it spreading down her chest as her heart started to pound.

“Oh shit.” She said. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s all good.”

“But I just – I just called you a rat bastard! Oh my god, I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t have – that was so unprofessional of me.” She stood up suddenly with the need to run and hide in her tent.

Oliver held a hand out towards her as though attempting to calm her down. “Honestly, it’s fine. People have called me worse to my face when they’ve known who I am.”

John chuckled. “Someone threw a coffee pot at his head one time.”

“Yeah, Mrs. Whitman, she was not happy with me that day.” He smiled at the memory.

Felicity motioned with her hands at nothing. “Still, I shouldn’t have said that and I’m sorry.” She paused. “I’m just going to go to bed, goodnight.” She tried to walk slowly to her tent but couldn’t help but speed up and throw herself in and zip up her tent as soon as she could.

Taking a few deep breaths, she counted down from ten.

Well, she definitely would not be leaving her tent in the morning until they all left and then she would still wait another hour before heading out.

Ugh. She threw herself backward onto her sleeping mat.

Not much later, Felicity was still awake and she needed to pee. The others had all gone into their tents not too long ago but she still didn’t want to leave her sanctuary on the off chance one of them would come out to talk to her.

Half hour later and she couldn’t hold it anymore so she silently unzipped her tent and squinted into the dark cursing herself for not getting new batteries for her headlamp. She looked around and didn’t see any of them outside but listened for a moment then heard John snore. She snuck out and walked a few feet away, she could kind of see thanks to no light pollution and the bright stars and moon but it didn’t stop her from seeing a tree root and tripping.

“Ouf.” She caught herself with her hands before falling on her face and breaking her glasses. “Ow.” She rubbed her hands on her pants, feeling the cuts and scrapes on her palms.

“Felicity?” Oliver came walking out of the trees and came hustling over to her after seeing her on the ground. “Are you ok?”

She avoided looking at him as he picked up her hands to examine them.

“I just tripped on a tree root. I’m fine.”

“Need new a prescription?” He joked.

“No! I usually use my headlamp but I don’t have any batteries for it.”

“What kind of batteries?”

“Double A.”

He gently set her hands down and helped her to her feet. “Hold on.” And he disappeared into his tent and emerged a second later. “Here.” He held out some batteries and a headlamp of his own.

“Oh no I couldn’t take your extra batteries.”

“Just take it, I brought them as extra.” He insisted.

She eyed the headlamp he was trying to hand her before grabbing it quickly. “I’m not taking the batteries but I’ll borrow this right now only because my bladder is about to explode.”

She shoved the elastic on top of her head and went a few yards into the trees where she could see where she was going thanks to the light. She walked back to camp when she was done and saw Oliver still standing outside looking up at the sky.

“Thank you.” She said handing the headlamp back.

He took it but handed out the batteries to her again. “Take them. I don’t need them. It’s the least I could do for stealing your clients.” He smiled.

She looked away from him quickly. “I’m going home tomorrow so I have no need for them but thank you.” She replied pretending not to have heard him about the clients. “What were you doing out in the woods anyway? And how can you see without your light?”

“I can see really well in the dark. And you aren’t the only one with a bladder.” He smiled and sat down on a log.

Felicity clutched her hands, standing in front of him. “Look, I want to formally apologize for what I said earlier. It was completely uncalled for and totally unprofessional and I shouldn’t have called you names and I am really sorry.”

“It’s ok Felicity. I took no offence at all. If anything I should be apologizing to you.”

“Me?” Her eyes widened.

“Yes. I have heard about Smoak Technologies from my employees and they say how amazing you are. And I shouldn’t play dirty while trying to get clients.”

“How did – how did you know I was …” She trailed off.

“Smoak Technologies? After your rant, it was obvious who you are. Those in my IT department raves about _The_ Felicity Smoak.”

“You’ve heard about me?” She asked, shocked.

“Yes and you’re right. My company shouldn’t be trying to win over clients when you are the best at what you do.”

“Wow.” She mumbled, unsure what else to say. “Uh, thank you.”

“So, uh.” Oliver rubbed the back of his neck. “You are going home tomorrow?”

“Yeah, gotta get back to the office and shower off all the grim I’ve accumulated in the last few days.”

Oliver chuckled. “Right well I was wondering –“

They heard a zipper and William’s head stuck out from the tent.

“Dad?” He said, eyes half closed with sleep. “I had a nightmare.”

Oliver’s eyes went sad for William and he looked at Felicity.

“Goodnight Felicity.”

“Goodnight Oliver.”

She watched him as he hunched himself back into the tent with his son.

The next thing Felicity knew she was being woken up again by Digg’s deep voice waking them all up. When she peeked her eyes open she noticed the sun was higher up than it normally was, they had all slept in which was fine with her, it was a smaller hike today to get to the closest town. She gathered all her things, putting her hiking clothes on and brushing her finger through her hair before putting it up into a messy bun today. Leaving her tent, she saw Digg making his breakfast.

“Mornin’.” He said cheerfully.

“Morning.” She replied back with sleep still in her voice.

She set up her own small stove to make herself breakfast and coffee and thought about how she would buy a coffee when she got into town, a real coffee not instant and from a real coffee shop. She smiled at the thought.

Oliver came out of his tent fully dressed for the hike and turned back to stick his head back in to tell William he had to get up. He turned around and stilled when he saw Felicity and his eyes went to her messy bun.

“Good morning.” He smiled.

Felicity’s cheeks flushed. “Good morning.”

From the corner of her eye, she could see John’s head whipping back and forth as he looked at both of them then he shook his head and looked to his breakfast.

William came stumbling out of the tent still in his thick pajamas as he rubbed his eyes roughly. She noticed his eyes were puffy and red and he looked tired and now that she really looked at him, so did Oliver. William was quiet as the men packed up their stuff and Oliver help William to take their tent down. She could hear him murmuring something to William but will kept his head down, looking at the dirt.

They all headed out at the same time and John with his long legs was beyond their sight not long after they set out. William trailed behind but Oliver walked with Felicity but continued to look back at his son.

“Is he ok?” She asked, looking back at him and seeing him drag a large stick, they walked slowly so as not to lose him.

“Yeah. He just had a bad dream last night and he gets sad.” Oliver said with sadness in his voice.

Felicity didn’t ask anything more not wanting to intrude but then after a few minutes of silence, Oliver said,

“His mom died last year in an accident. He was with her and he still remembers it clearly. He’ll dream about it all the time and I don’t know how to help him.” He looked straight ahead as he talked. “I’ve taken him to a therapist which seems to help but the nightmares continue and then he is so depressed for the next few days afterwards and I just feel so hopeless.”

“I’m so sorry. That must have been hard on you too, losing her.”

“Sandra, she was a good mother, a great mother. She loved William more than anything in the world and would do anything for him and he loved her just as much. It was hard for him when we got a divorce a few years back. He didn’t like going back and forth between homes and even when he was with me, he would cry for her. It got better after a while but then after she died it just got so much worse. I take him out here to get his mind of everything. School, life, everything. He seems to like it. He likes to look at the stars to see if he can see his mother. It seems to help him cope.”

“It’s hard to lose a parent.” She said not looking at him either.

Oliver nodded. “He still stays at his step father house sometimes; he really likes him and his half-sister. She just turned two and he likes to be a big brother and tries to be strong for her because she lost her mother too even if she is too young to even remember her.”

“That’s kind of sweet though.”

They lapse back into silence for another half hour.

“I know it’s not the same thing but when I was seven my dad let me and my mom.” She said. “I remember them fighting one night and he just walked out the door. I tried to follow him but I was too slow. I knew it was a bad fight and that something had changed that night and I remember staying up for as long as I could to wait for him to come back. But he never did. I thought it was because of me, my parents had me when they were

young and I blamed myself that I was born too soon for them they could be happy if I didn’t make an appearance. It hurt when he didn’t come back and my mother, well it was hard for her to be a single mother and she had to work multiple jobs so I never saw her.”

“Losing a parent in any way is hard.” Oliver said looking at her now.

They caught up with John and stopped for a quick and small lunch. When they got back on the trail, William walked next to Felicity, his face still somber.

“Your dad is gone?” William asked shyly.

Felicity eyes widened and she looked behind her at Oliver who only looked back at her.

“Yes.”

“He didn’t die?”

“No.” She inhaled deeply. “He didn’t want to be my dad anymore.”

“And your mom?”

“She died a few years ago.”

“How did she die?”

“Heart attack.” Her voice cracked.

“Where you with her?” He asked looking ahead like his father earlier.

“No, I wasn’t. But I wish I could have been.”

“Do you have a step-mom or dad?”

“No and I don’t have any sibling either.”

William’s feet slowed down. “It’s just you?”

“It’s just me.” She said quietly.

William stopped suddenly and threw his arms around her waist in a hug and dug his head into her stomach. He froze for a second before kneeling down in front of him and wrapped her arms around him as he adjusted his around her neck. Tears sprang to her eyes and she let them fall slowly down her cheeks. She hugged him until he pulled away and looked at her, he lifted his hand to wipe away the tears on her face and she smiled at him. They didn’t say anything more as Felicity stood back up and saw Oliver had stopped and was watching them with an expression she couldn’t figure out. They started walking, William still by her side but this time he took her hand in his.

The rest of the hike was quiet and not long they made their way to the next town over and saw John waiting for them by a large truck, he leaned on the hood talking on the phone but hung up when he say them walking towards him.

“Hello fellow travelers!” He grinned.

Felicity stuck around with them as she found out the truck was theirs and had driven it here before all pilling into John’s truck and riding it back to where they started. Oliver packed his and William’s bags in the bed while she and John talked. When Oliver was done, he stepped to where they were.

“Well,” Felicity began, picking up her pack and setting it on her shoulders. “Thanks for the company.”

“Where are you going?” William asked.

Felicity threw a thumb over her shoulder towards the town. “I gotta go there and get some coffee.”

“How are you going to get home?” He asked, his eyebrows pulling together.

“Oh well I was going to try to find a ride.” She said awkwardly.

“No.” All three men said at the same time.

“You’ll ride with us. We’re going to the same place anyway.” Oliver said with a smile.

“No really, that fine, I wanted to get some coffee here anyway.”

“Then we’ll get coffee.” Oliver said, taking her pack from her.

He loaded her bag in the back and they all got into the truck, she sat in the back with William. They went through a drive through and all got coffee and Will got a hot chocolate, Oliver wouldn’t let her pay. William’s spirits seemed to pick up as he continued to talk to Felicity and ask her question after question about her work and space camp. The ride wasn’t too long when Oliver pulled back up to where she began her hike and John got out with a wave an went to his truck.

“It was nice to meet you Felicity.” He said. “I’m sure I’ll be seeing you around.” He had a smirk on his face as he walked away.

She got into the front seat then and saw Oliver looking at the back of his friend with an annoyed expression. William continued to talk to her and Oliver as she gave directions back to her home, she didn’t even think twice about letting him know where she lived.

“I think I’ve decided on your trail name.” William said, sticking his head between the two.

“What would that be?” She turned to him.

“Overwatch.”

“Overwatch?” She asked.

“Yeah.”

“Why Overwatch?”

“’Cause that game is colorful and so are you and you helped us get around that river and because I like that game.”

Felicity understood what he meant on the last one. He liked the game, he liked her.

“I like it.” She smiled at him.

“I like it too.” Oliver said, looking at her briefly before looking back at the road.

Oliver pulled up to her town home and she jumped out, Oliver and William followed. Oliver grabbed her bag for her and handed it to her.

“Will we see you again?” Will asked.

“Oh, well uh.” She looked to Oliver.

“Have dinner with us! Dad makes really good food!” William jumped up and down.

Felicity looked to Oliver whose eyes were intense as he looked at her but

but then he smiled.

“Have dinner with us.” He said.

Felicity blushed but smiled widely. “Ok. I’d love to.”

“Yay! How about tonight?” William jumped up again.

“Will, she just got home –“

“Tonight sounds good.” Felicity interjected.

Oliver looked up at her with surprise and suddenly she felt like maybe he didn’t want to see her tonight but then he smiled.

“Alright, tonight it is”

They traded phone numbers and he texted her his address.

“Ok, I will see you tonight then.” She really needed to get in the shower.

“Tonight.” Oliver said with a promise.


End file.
